


creep

by SoonerThanLater



Category: StarKid Productions RPF
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-22
Updated: 2014-07-22
Packaged: 2018-02-09 23:30:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2002221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SoonerThanLater/pseuds/SoonerThanLater
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Joey comforts his friend Rachel after she has discovered her trust was betrayed by someone she never thought could.</p>
            </blockquote>





	creep

**Author's Note:**

> This is a fic I wrote a few years ago and suddenly felt like publishing today since it seems this era in my life is not yet over. I've learned that it takes time to rebuild trust and a whole lot of effort from both parties.

Rachel’s legs felt like dead weight as she trudged along in the muddy slush. The wind whipped her cheeks harshly, causing them to sting. Her eyes scanned the red brick path ahead, wary of any ice patches.

Her mind felt like an empty canvas, just waiting for her imagination to make its first strokes. She didn’t know what exactly she was waiting for.

_I want a perfect body_

_I want a perfect soul_

The melancholic lyrics haunted the spaces between her ears. She didn’t know why she didn’t change the song. This was not the type of music to listen to on a Friday afternoon. Even she knew that.

            It was not until she had been walking for ten minutes when she noticed that she had not crossed paths with any one. It was as if she was only one left standing on campus.

            Her gaze lifted to an unfinished building standing in a space that used to be a green expanse. She was going to miss that space. She looked at the boring pattern of bricks with distaste. It did not fail to blend in with other brick buildings that surrounded it.

            She walked on.

            Another minute of placing one foot in front of the other passed. And then _that_ feeling overcame her.

            She thought about her family being a couple of hundred miles away. She thought of the dismal hallway of her dormitory. She thought of the silence she tried to fill with music and characters from the television. She thought about spaces and gaps. She thought about people. She thought about friendship. She thought about _love_.

              _I wish I was special…_

            There was nothing to stop her eyes from watering.

            Joey exited the library and a wave of relief mixed with the bitter cold embraced him. He inhaled the crisp air before preparing to descend the steps. Before he could take a step, the girl standing a short distance away caught his eye. He knew the tote bag slung over the girl’s shoulder all too well. He had seen it countless times, draped across her desk chair, dropped carelessly onto the floor of his room, propped up by the couch in the living room.

_I want you to notice_

_When I’m not around._

She did not notice that she had stopped walking. Her mind froze her in place, as if coercing her to face the harsh reality.

He took tentative steps towards her until he knew she could detect his presence.

She turned around to face him and that’s when he saw her for the first time. He saw her for the first time, crying.

Her wet eyes met his confused ones.

 “Joey—“ Her voice struggled to utter the two syllables.

Joey panicked. A girl had never cried in front of him before. And the one girl he had never expected to cry in the middle of a college campus, on a Friday afternoon, in the dead of winter, was crying. She made no indication that she was going to move.

Her eyes searched his, but not imploringly or desperately, but more curiously.

He took one look at her enigmatic demeanor and was left speechless. He wished Darren was here. He would probably know what to do. He would probably know what the hell was going on.

But Darren was not there.

Without any precaution or hesitation, he wrapped his arms around her. It just made sense. She was probably cold after all.

Rachel didn’t know why Joey had his arm wrapped around her shoulders, guiding her towards his car. She didn’t know why Joey turned off his Passion Pit CD when he started the engine. She didn’t know why he preferred to drive in silence. All she knew was that her cheeks were suddenly warm. She didn’t care enough to feel embarrassed. On the contrary, she wanted to be taken away.  Her eyes still felt wet.

When they arrived at the house he shared with his three other roommates, they left their books in the car and made their way wordlessly inside.

A couple of hours later, Rachel wrapped a blanket tighter around herself. She had changed into one of Joey’s old t-shirts. Her hand rested for a quick moment on her stomach, it was full from the pasta Joey microwaved from yesterday’s dinner. She laid herself down on the bed and just closed her eyes, inhaling the smell of the soap Joey uses.

The house was quiet, with only the sound of Joey dispensing boiling water from a Hot Shot into two large mugs. She remembered him saying his housemates had gone home for the weekend.

She watched him carry the two mugs full of piping hot tea into the bedroom. She got up and crawled to the edge of the bed to meet him half way. Gingerly, she took one of the mugs from him.

He had dressed down too, wearing a pair of gray sweatpants and a plain white t-shirt.

“I’ll help you wash the dishes later.”

He looked at her incredulously. “Not until you tell me what’s going on.”

She took a sip of the steaming tea, allowing the burning sensation to desensitize her tongue.

“Shit, that’s hot.”

He just shook his head. But nothing prepared him for what came out of her mouth next.

“Why do people lie?”

Her voice rang out as if in childish innocence.

            He didn’t quite know how to respond, so he just took a sip of the tea, buying himself some time.

            “Don’t people realize that they’re just going to fuck everything up if they do? How is anyone supposed to trust them ever again?”

            He listened to her carefully, something he was not used to. He wondered if the conversations she had with Darren ever got this deep. If that was the reason why they usually talked behind closed doors.

            “I think that people lie because they don’t know what else to do. And they’re afraid. Yeah—it’s usually fear that drives people to lie.” He hoped that his voice did not reveal his uncertainty.

            She seemed to consider this.

            “Then why don’t people just do what they’re supposed to do? Just tell the fucking truth. Because everyone is going to find out anyway. And it’s just going to be worse.” She spat out the words and resumed sipping the tea that was cooling off fast.

            He didn’t want her to cry anymore. So he leaned over and kissed her forehead quickly.

            “I’m not perfect. But I would never lie to you.”

            She gave him a serious look, “How can you be so sure of that?”

            “Because you only deserve the truth. No matter how ugly it is.”

            She rubbed her right eye tiredly, “And what if the truth is so horrible, it breaks my heart?”

              He shook his head, “Then I don’t deserve you.”

            And for a moment, she believed him.

            He shifted so that he sat next to her instead of facing her. With his free arm, he embraced her in a side hug. She found his gentle grip on her shoulder reassuring.

            Her breath became ragged when she forgot to breathe in and breathe out. She let her head fall onto his shoulder.

            “No one deserves to be lied to.” He said simply. “And I just wanted to let you know that… I would never just get up and go and let you be alone.”

            As he said this, his thumb traced circles on her shoulder, gently massaging the muscle there.

            She closed her eyes and relished the feel of his touch. She had not been held like this for a long time. She felt safe. It was as if the disturbances that had once haunted her thoughts were repulsed by these warm feelings.

            Computers remained shut down. Cell phones turned on silent mode.  The TV’s dark screen posed no distractions.

            They did not leave the bed for a very long time. Two empty mugs now stood on the nightstand.

            They talked about everything and anything.

            The digital clock read midnight.

            “Is your roommate going to worry about you?” He asked.

            She shook her head nonchalantly, twirling a strand of his dark hair around her pinky.

            “Thank you, Joey.” She bit the inside of her mouth nervously, “For taking care of me. And for not asking too many questions. I really appreciate you.”

            He smiled lightly, “You would have done the same for me.”

            She silently agreed with him.


End file.
